The Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM) and the American Nutrition Association (ANA) have announced a new online course, “Therapeutic Food Plans: A Component of Personalized Nutrition.” The course, offered through IFM, with the first cohort scheduled for October 12–November 26, is designed to educate and support nutrition professionals and other clinicians on the functional medicine collaborative care team about how to personalize and apply IFM’s suite of therapeutic food plans.
The goal of this course is to provide clinicians with the tools needed to empower patients to improve their health with personalized food plans and the skills to maintain positive, long-term lifestyle habits. Clinicians who have completed the therapeutic food plans course will be listed in ANA’s Practitioner Finder directory if they meet eligibility requirements.
“At ANA, we believe that nutrition belongs at the core of health care—and that personalized nutrition most powerfully taps our health potential,” said ANA CEO Michael Stroka. “This new course helps nutrition professionals customize food plans to each individual, a critical element of personalized nutrition.”
This interactive, online learning course provides tactical strategies for increasing point-of-care skills and tips for keeping patients engaged and accountable for their health. It also provides the necessary tools to address modifiable lifestyle factors that may be influencing dietary patterns. Upon completion of this course, clinicians will be able to design personalized, therapeutic food plans for their patients, taking into account their unique dietary needs and preferences.
“Nutrition professionals play an integral role in the collaborative care team model,” said IFM CEO Amy R. Mack. “This course equips them with the clinical strategies and therapeutic tools to tailor nutrition plans that can support each patient on their journey to improved health.”
This new course is intended for nutrition professionals and other clinicians who are applying IFM’s food plans in practice. After completing “Therapeutic Food Plans: A Component of Personalized Nutrition,” functional nutrition–oriented RDs, CNSs and nutritionists with advanced degrees will be prepared to contribute to collaborative care teams with other IFM-trained practitioners. Additionally, physicians and other healthcare practitioners who regularly provide nutrition advice to patients will find this course useful, as it works to personalize nutrition within the IFM framework.
Registration for the course is now available at www.ifm.org/food-plans.
